The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1887-05-05
100 Doses One Dollar

rolling stock, and it possesses facilities
for doing more carrying than the way
traffic supplies; and the naked question
before it is whether. after carrying all its
way freight at reasonable charge, it is
not justified in employing the rolling
stock, which otherwise would be idle, in
carrying through freight at one-sixth rate
| rather than not carry it at all. The rea-
soning is certainly specious. 1t looks
plausible, and it is fortified by many years
reasonable? Would it be right for a gro
Ger to charge his regular customers who
live in his immediate neighborhood
and are, therefore, under some
necessity of dealing with him, 50
per cent. more for goods than he charges
distant persons living near another gro
Gerry, and whose custom he can attract
only by granting them special favors?
Take another illustrations: Suppose there
are two bakeries located in the opposite
ends of town; the persons living near
one are its regular patrons, and they sup
ply it with the custom that is its main
support. Would not these have fair
complaint if they should discover that
while their baker was making them pay
cents loaf for bread he was trying to
draw custom from his competitor at the
other end of the town by habitually sell
ing them loaves for 4 cents? In either case
it would be granting special favors to dis.
tant and only possible customers, and
charging the cost to the regular patrons
who cannot help themselves. Or 1t
would be like the conduct of the salt
manufacturers of New York. They ask
the government to place a duty of 100
per cent. on imported salt to protect their
industry from foreign competition, and
the government grants them the favor.
Having thus secured absolute control Of
the home market, they go into Canada
and compete for that market by selling
salt at price 20 per cent. lower than
they exact for it in this country.
Senator Stanford says rate of $50 q
ton for 1,500 miles in not excessive, and
the way people have no right to com
plain. But this is not so clear.
All things are measured by compare
son. A charge of $50 for 1900 miles
is, to a charge of $40 for 5000 miles as 6
to l. The way communities are made to
pay Sc for service which the terminal
community gets for 81. The pretended
excuse for this is that the through freight
must be carried at a very low rate in or
der to get it, and thus keep the roads
rolling stock from being idle; but may
not another and less creditable explana-
ton be given, viz, that the way com
munities are charged six rates simply be-
cause they cannot help themselves? The
way communities have grounds for dis
putting the statement that $50 for 1,500
miles is reasonable, when the same road
charges only $40 for 5000. The rates are
as six to one, and between Sc charged
against way business and 81 against
through, there ought to be a mean rate
that would not make it a disadvantage to
live along the road instead of at its end.
A railroad corporation usually owes its
existence to the state its line runs through,
and it may be asked that, as a rule, the
pretense of building it was to benefit the
people living along the route. Is it fair,
then, for the creature to Withhold from its
creators favors which it accords TO out
siders? 1t has right, certainly, to strive
for through traffic, to draw over its line
freight passing from one side of the con-
tinent to another; but has it a right to
give shippers in California and con
signees in New York reasonably low rates,
and make up the loss by charging the
people of Missouri and Illinois unreason-
ably high rates?